SEC deal would be all-around victory

OUR VIEW

Nashville is rolling out the red carpet - and the blue, gold, orange and every other color in the Southeastern Conference - with plans reportedly to be announced today for the city to host an SEC basketball tournament for 12 consecutive years beginning in 2015.

The announcement is expected to detail that the SEC men's tournament will be held at Bridgestone Arena every year except 2017, 2018 and 2020, with the SEC women's tournament coming to Bridgestone in those years. It isn't new for these tournaments to come to Nashville, but the scope of this deal is new: The SEC is making Nashville its "primary site" for basketball, just as Atlanta is the primary site for its conference championship in football.

For Nashvillians, this is good news, even if you're not a college basketball fan. For the better part of a week each February or March, enthusiastic fans from Texas to Florida, South Carolina to Missouri and everywhere between will come to cheer on their teams and sample Nashville hospitality.

SEC officials obviously like what they see here: a city easily accessible from its 14 member universities, with a convenient airport, a number of large, new hotels and Nashville's unique attractions, most of which are in walking distance of the arena.

It's just possible that the Music City Center helped in the decision, too. Despite criticism that it is not living up to booking expectations, a viable, centrally located convention center is important to a city the size of Nashville as it moves forward. The mix of facilities - music halls and conference centers rubbing elbows with historic honky-tonks and first-class restaurants - is what SEC fans remember and enjoy from their past visits. But to keep them coming back year after year, Nashville should continue to find ways to offer a great visitor experience.

With the SEC agreement, Nashville's reputation as a friendly city will only grow.

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SEC deal would be all-around victory

Nashville landing the SEC basketball tournament for 12 straight years would be a huge win for city.